Citra (Single Hop Series) | Hermitage Brewing

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Notes / Commercial Description:
Citra is the most well received in our series of Single Hop beers. After taking Gold in 2011 and 2012 at the California Craft Brew Competition, and due to its high demand with our consumers, we decided to make this a year-round style. This IPA pours a dark amber in color with an off-white head. The hop aroma is floral, with citrus notes, while the malts have a toasted barley character with some caramel. Citra‘s hop flavor is resiny, with some citrus quality that is offset by toasty malt flavors with a touch of caramel. This is a moderately full bodied beer, with a bright carbonation, and a dry finish.

Reviews by monkeylovebeer:

After becoming completely strung out on Widmer’s limited X-114 IPA, I started jonesing pretty bad for some more Citra hops when I stumbled upon this offering from San Jose’s Hermitage Brewing Co.

In true, well-crafted India Pale Ale fashion, Citra Hops, one of three single-hop IPAs Hermitage has cooked up, pours a tangerine-tinted gold and throws a nice inch-and-a-half head tightly packed with egg cream-colored foam. Citra Hops shows better retention than did its Citra sister, but doesn’t throw nearly as much lace up on the glass.

The nose is a nice balance of caramel malt and, of course, citrus. Upon first sip, the first thing I notice is the more aggressive bittering. Hermitage packed enough hops in here to blow the joint and the grapefruit sizzle sits on the tongue nearly, but not quite, crowding out the pineapple, lemon, and orange blossom notes.

All-in-all, this is a pretty good representation of this particular hop varietal. It would be interesting to do a vertical tasting with their single-hop Amarillo and Columbus offerings. At least this is a major step in the right direction after Hermitage’s horrible “Craptopia” series.

More User Reviews:

I bought a keg of this from the brewery. They are awesome there, always willing to talk beer. They hooked me up with a handle too! The citra IPA is an easy drinking one, not too bitter but still a good hoppy flavor. Great look and smell, with a fairly smooth finish.

Poured from a 22oz bottle. Bright orangey amber with a thick, sticky, white head. Floral, citrus, and pale malts in the nose, with a hint of solvent. Well-carbonated. Creamy mouthfeel with a medium body. Citrus hops upfront, with notes of orange, grapefruit, rind, and pine with an oily and resiny edge followed by some astringency and soapiness. Faint malt sweetness in the back, but overall a dry beer with a lingering hop presence and ashy spiciness.

Although this is a hop-forward beer, a bit more malt balance would go a long way. The hop usage could use some dialing in too; getting some unwelcome flavors.

Good sign of a copper and orange pour, off white head. Mild citra aroma, but pleasant. A little tropical and citrus, nice.

And here comes the diacetyl taste. Envelopes the hops, the whole beer pretty much. Not to rely on a lazy cliche, but it was slightly buttery. A buttery sauvignon blanc mixed with a mild citra single hopped ipa was what I was tasting. This beer was better just smelling it (which the buttery did not reveal itself in the nose).

Can't recommend this one at $5. Again, bought at Bevmo, so who knows. I just don't see myself buying any ipa's from these guys or Bevmo again, such a disappointing experience.

Trying the Single Hop Citra Series from Hermitage and quite honetly I was hoping for a bit more. This beer is not bad....good in fact....just was hoping for a bit more. The beer poured a cloudy copper with thick white head that is lacing nicely. The scent is powered by fresh hop that favors pine and spice. The taste is has a twang of bitter citrus throughout but there is a battle between a sweet malt and hop throught the beginning and middle, in which the malt loses iin the end and the bitterness lingers on the pallet. The mouthfeel is medium in body with smooth carbonation. Overall it is a decent IPA....I wish I had some of the other single series available to compare....that would be cool.

Bomber from BevMo Sunnyvale. Man, everyone and their mother is brewing a Citra IPA these days. Especially their mothers. Mama Tick brews a DISGUSTING one...and I mean "disgusting" in the way that means "awesome!"

Pours a clear reddish-amber color with a one-finger off-white head that has average retention.

Very nice aroma, earthy, resinous, and citrusy, with a caramel malt background and light toast.

The flavor has a substantial caramel malt base and a good hoppiness to it. Average malt and hop balance. Fairly resinous with lots of grapefruit. High bitterness level.

Medium-plus bodied with loads of hop resins and average carbonation.

A surprisingly righteous Citra IPA. Actually becomes a little brutal to drink much of though, so I have to mark it down a touch there.

Purchased at an area BevMo while on vacation. I think it was $5-something for a 22oz bottle. Into a glass

Pours medium caramel with an inch or so of off white head. Above average lacing.

smells of sticky sweet hops and some malt. average overall and probably a little much. I almost get a stale whiff towards the end, not saying anything about this bottle's freshness, just a smell that reminds me of stale things

taste follows; a bit too strong, not very balanced

A bit slick and syrupy, but pretty good carbonation

Overall not something I'd buy again. I was interested to try some "single hops" type brews. I think I'd prefer a Kern River, but again you can't buy their Citra off the shelf at any BevMo

Smell- very floral, piney, hops are present but are balanced by the citrus smell.

Taste- a diffrent monster unlike any ipa I've had. Tons of citruis fruit, more than im used to. Pineapple and orange sweetness. It's followed by a nice hop piney presence. Sweet cotton candy sweetness and some hops in the aftertaste.

Overall- I will be having this some time soon and thanks to this brewery I cant spell I get the full effect from this hop.

I've tried 5/10 Mikkellers and this single hop beer is the best example that I've seen of the single hop style. I'm pretty harsh on IPAs and Tied House, but this one is definitely worth seeking out (hate to tell you what California beer on the other side of the Bay that this compares to...).